Pet Woes

For months now, we have been deliberating on whether or not to import good ol' Max to Australia. The idea came to us when we decided that this is the place where we will be for the next few years. The urgency, however, only occurred to me recently when Max was found with papillomatosis (a non-cancerous tumor, already surgically removed weeks ago), increased level of white blood cells, and now some wounds which has ruptured (suspected by my sister to be something called lick granuloma - which is due to mental stress and boredom!?!). Before I continue, let me first introduce Max.

Max is my yellow labrador retriever, a pure breed, born Apollo Cani Dei on the 27th of September 2001. He became mine at 2 months. Knowing that young pups need a lot of care and attention, I would wake up at 5:30 to get myself ready for work and have enough time to feed him and play with him. At 4 months I hired a personal trainer for Max; he obviously is a very bright dog. He would try to dodge the trainer when he sees him approaching. Max showed very good progress, obedient and skillful of the commands and tricks he was taught. He also proved to be too enthusiastic and knows when and from whom he could get away being naughty. He would listen to the trainer, but would happily chase the new househelp for the fun of it. It wasn't easy raising Max; he clearly is a big dog and it is a struggle when he resists at activities he does not particularly enjoy - e.g. bath, and going down the stairs. He is scared of going down the stairs! For such a masculine dog, it's a shame when Char would call him Maxine because of this weakness. Being too energetic, he sometimes scares visitors away, tugging at them. He may come off as disobedient, but he is just a playful dog oblivious of his own size and strength! In my mind, it will be good for him to have other dogs to play with, but the idea of getting other pups has to be dismissed knowing the disapproval of the "elders" in the family. September of this year, Max will be turning 4. I will see him again in December.

He was still very much of a pup when I left Manila... barely 2 years old. Unbelievable as it may sound, but having left Max back home gives me an awful feeling of guilt, like that of an unwilling parent abandoning a helpless infant. Sure there are people back home who would take care of him, but it is different from when I was there. I could see and feel his over-excitement and joy whenever I go back for a holiday. Somehow he knows because he would be waiting by the stairs every time I arrive home. At the same time, he senses when I am leaving again, as he would be howling and whimpering as our luggages are being carried down. I am not able to exactly define what Max thinks or feels, but I know for sure that he becomes lonely and longing for more affection now than before. The complications he has now, I don't doubt, are partly due to the situation that he is in. I feel responsible for these... had I not left him things may have been different.

This brings us then to the question on how to bring Max over. Many have expressed their opinions on the idea, in summary "a lost cause" they would say, "a futile attempt" they reckon. But will the attempt be futile? I don't know. There are many obstacles that we have to go through if we really are proceeding. The major one is quarantine laws. Australian Quarantine does not allow direct importation of dogs to Australia from non-approved countries. The Philippines is a non-approved country. The only way we could go around this is to import Max to an approved country where he should continuously reside for 6 months, before he could be imported to Australia. The only Asian countries in this category are: Brunei, Hong Kong, Japan, Macau, Singapore, and Taiwan. My only option is Hong Kong, where I have family. Then again, Max would have to pass quarantine laws of that country. And would my family in Hong Kong agree to take him for half a year, make sure that he gets his shots, walk him, care for him, etc? Two very trying feat. Another question I ask, would Max make it under quarantine? Would I be subjecting him to more stress, anxiety, and loneliness? I'm afraid I don't know.

The way to go now is to research more on requirements, and proceed with the initial steps. I can already hear the voices of criticism and disapproval. I wonder if I can pull this off.

Snip Snip Away

From ancient times to this modern day and age, the constant transformation of fashion and trend never ceases… however, always going around that 360 degree turn... or return. Rummaging through our parents’ old stuff would usually find us some vintage treasures that when worn would look cool and hip today. But somehow this cycle does not seem to apply to hair styles, eh? Who would now go around sporting a long hair tied up in a bun that is so distinctive to the men in many old Chinese dynasties? How about the long, shiny, straight Beatles look? Or Elvis Presley’s complete with sideburns? What were they thinking? Shivers!

Women have since the beginning been more conscious of their style and look than the male counterpart. It is only lately that men have revolutionised themselves and started adopting similar kind of care and consciousness towards their appearances. Men are now using hair wax, leave-on conditioner; they’ve started colouring their hair, wearing them long, perming and even braiding. Gone are the Ming dynasty and medieval looks, but oh helloooo the short spike, sleek back, soft curls, etc. More and more salons catering to men have popped up, even charging cutting and styling fees comparable to women cuts. Outrageous! Harharhar! Anyway, before the rambling really gets out of place, I must say that this entry is not going to lead to any profound conclusions, no deep thoughts or insights are going to be said, no research has been conducted or books read for review, just a stream of spontaneous writing, and sharing of an amateur’s (me) work on someone’s (him!) crown. Have a look.

That was Monday afternoon's project. The participant - Mr A is holding Mr M (compare and contrast the two's hairdo). I have two hairdressing scissors, brand new, never been used, sitting inside the cupboard itching to get out of its wrappings. The brave soul that Mr A is... was willing enough (or made willing) to be the first client. Looking at how professionals do it, the art seem quite straight-forward and simple. Especially for men's hair. Just gather the hair where it is long and cut away, do this consistently for all parts and in no time, you'll have a shorter version of their former style. What a fool to think that! One thing I've learned is to cut the hair against the direction of growth; cutting horizontally would be a disaster as the cuts will be obvious and we don't want that. Cutting Mr A's hair is also a build-up of confidence, the more I go along the more comfortable I felt trimming his hair; and the more I go along the more at ease he became as well... as a result even dosing off and waking up to a new 'do! *Uh-oh... too late to change your mind now, eh?* We didn't exactly achieve the Brad Pitt look... no serious spunky spikes; but we've settled for George Clooney's short crown. Simple, easy to maintain, with a teeny bit of a hiccup here and there, but still ok.

Fishy Week

We are regulars of the Victoria Market, a place where fresh food products are of abundance and selling at reasonably better prices than the local butcher or the supermarket. It is also the place to be when buying fresh (not frozen) seafood, which supermarkets are unable to make available. Seldom does a week go by without anyone from this household frequenting the market to purchase the week’s supply of seafood, mostly fish than prawns or squid which have higher cholesterol content. Our diet I would say have become more of a consciously planned out one, inclined towards more white meat, fruits and vegetables.

It has been a fishy week. We’ve had four different types of fish for the last seven days, cooked in different ways of course. Having fish very often is good, but not when it is the same kind and the same flavour every time. That can actually be quite putting. And so it is an adventure to experiment on and try out various types of preparation for fish. To share some:

Salmon
Salmon can be prepared in many ways. Often I would put it in the oven and bake my pre-seasoned salmon wrapped in foil, primarily because baking requires the least effort. Some of the baked salmon styles I have done – (1) seasoned with salt and pepper and brushed with butter, this is quick and simple, the flavour soft thus retaining the natural taste of the fish; (2) seasoned with mixed herbs, sliced onion, and topped with lime cut into thin cross-sections, this one gives a more tangy flavour to the salmon; (3) placed on a bed of cut spring onions, sprinkled with salt, touch of chilli, brown sugar and a tiny squeeze of either lemon or orange juice, this gives a mixture of saltiness, spiciness, sweetness, and sourness.

Of course, pan frying and grilling are also standard ways of cooking salmon. These methods just require constant attention. Salmon head can also be baked or pan-fried; they’re good when they reach a level of crispiness. But I reckon that they are still best in soup. Boiling your salmon head in water, adding some miso paste, some cut tofu and a dash of seaweed… very good for colder winter days.

Trevally
Like salmon, I have tried cooking trevally by oven-baking and pan-frying. One deviation from the former fish is that it is not as suitable to be brushed with butter. Herbs and spices are good. I’ve twice tried putting it on a bed of chopped coriander, topped it with sliced tomatoes and lemon, of course it’s a given that the fish has already been rubbed with salt, seasoned with a bit of desired herbs, and then wrapped in foil and baked. It turned out tasting like a distinctive Filipino dish… sinigang! The coriander gives it a slight twist, some people may not like this flavour but we certainly do.

Craving for some bread-crumbed cover fish, but not wanting to deep fry, my alternative method is to use the same coating but baking the fish. First and as always, season the fish, this time all the desired herbs, salt, etc. are mixed with plain flour. After coating the fish with this, dip into egg (beaten), and then dipped into another bowl of breadcrumbs and sesame seed. Baking tray should be brushed with oil so that the fish doesn’t stick. 30 minutes in the oven with 200 C gas mark should make it all brown and scrumptious. For dip, Thai sweet chilli will do… or maybe it’s just me. :-)

Another favourite is to pan-fry, and having sugar caramelise on the fish towards the end… when the fish is already cooked. Not too much on the sugar as it will be too sweet… and not too early because it will burn.

Flake
My newest and favourite recipe for flake is to cook it semi-Vietnamese, semi-Chinese style. The Vietnamese bit comes in the flavour, and the Chinese bit comes with putting the fish in a clay-pot to simmer. Cut into pieces, jazz the fish up with any spice that you feel like… I like the combination of salt, lemon pepper, and chilli. Coat the fish with a bit of corn flour, and brown them in a wok with heated oil. Now that the tedious part is done, just add chopped garlic, a cup of stock, sugar, chilli, and let cook until the sauce thickens. When it’s almost done, put in some fish sauce to taste, and garnish with sautéed onions. Voila!

Flake is good for these kinds of cooking, as the meat is firmer and is not as prone to crumbling apart when tossed and turned in a wok, or mixed in with other stuff. We have also used this fish for congee… a bit of cheating by adding in some chicken stock for more flavour. Instant yum cha!

Barramundi
The meat of barramundi is finer and softer compared to the above three fishes mentioned. I find that it is most suited for steam cooking. This evening was a barramundi dinner following the standard Chinese cuisine. Thank God I didn’t have to gut or scale the fish; they do all of those in the market. Man, these fish you have to look out for the eyes… are they crystal clear, not already sunken and dead looking… but they’re dead, aren’t they?!?! Anyway… to the cooking… following instructions from my mom stuck at the back of my head for the longest time, I aimed to create the sort of flavour and taste that she produces. Cutting some wedges on the fish and stuffing some slivers of ginger into them (to remove fishy smell) and rubbing it with salt, it went for a fish sauna for 20 minutes. I had soy sauce and sautéed spring onions ready to top on to the fish after cooking. It turned out all well and good, although I consider still a notch below that of my mom’s.

That's about it for this entry on fish... there are heaps more out there in the market ready to be experimented on in the kitchen. Next go... would probably be fishing itself... good to be able to do it from start to finish.

News Flash!!!

This afternoon, I went to the local DIMIA office (Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs) to get a new label for my passport. Nope, it’s not an extension of my student visa… I’ve a collection of them already, and thank goodness I don’t need to get any of those anymore. A permanent residence visa… that’s my passport’s new accessory! Although I didn’t have any qualms of not being granted permanent residency, I was still very much surprised to receive the letter evidencing the grant… because it all happened within one week of lodging my application. So there… one thing out of the way, one thing less to wait for.

The onshore skilled independent applications nowadays are processed really efficiently. As long as one has all the requirements and documents complete, properly organised and numbered, the processing will be very swift. Many lodge their applications with only partial of the requirements sent. Although this does not invalidate the application, it will undoubtedly prolong the processing time, as when follow-up documents are sent, the office would have to go through finding the person’s files, reviewing the entire application again, yada yada yada, and it is very likely that it’ll be put off until someone gets the time to look at it again. There is also the possibility that documents get misplaced in the course of the whole thing. For the case officer, between a complete set of application and an incomplete set, the former will of course be the choice, while the latter may be deemed as quite tedious. So, the trick is to get everything ready before lodging the application.

This new accoutrement… hopefully, will signal new prospects and open up new roads. And yippee… I would be able to go home for Christmas!

***
Ok, in response to Jeffrey's tag:
What are the things you enjoy, even when no one around you wants to go out and play?
- have an afternoon tea or coffee, while playing crosswords
- bake
- write… thus my blog
- go to Border’s across the street, plant myself on one of the couches, and pour over books and magazines

What lowers your stress/blood pressure/anxiety level? Make a list, post it in your journal.
- the patience of Andrew, he's like a calming soothing drug
- exercise, the major stress reliever
- grocery shopping, shoe shopping
- head and shoulder massage